Courtyard House: Drunk and tipsy, the whole courtyard exposed at the start.

Zhang Dabiao's words were a very direct message to Sha Zhu: if you marry Qin Huairu, you're doomed.

Of course, everyone has to die eventually, whether it's sooner or later.

But dying of old age in a hospital bed and freezing to death under a bridge and being eaten by wild dogs are two different things, okay?

The latter is so damn frustrating, it's so frustrating that it could easily generate vengeful ghosts, okay?

If Sha Zhu still chooses to be with Qin Huairu under these circumstances, then Zhang Dabiao really doesn't know what to say.

So he didn't go into details, only saying that Sha Zhu would marry Qin Huairu. Whether he marries her tomorrow or waits until he's in his forties or fifties, it's still marriage, right? Zhang Dabiao wasn't lying, was he?

The rest is up to you, you silly Zhu.

After Sha Zhu left, Qin Jingru came out to clear the table. Zhang Dabiao teased her, "Jingru, do you want to know what your original future would have been like?"

Qin Jingru immediately shook her head: "I don't care what the future holds, anyway, Brother Da Biao, I'm sticking with you."

Zhang Dabiao was speechless, but then he thought about it again and realized that this really was Qin Jingru's personality.

Forget it, so be it.

It's better to follow me than to follow Xu Damao, get deceived, and then deceive Xu Damao with Qin Huairu, ultimately ending up with no children.

That's settled then.

Not long after the cleanup was finished, cries came from the yard. It turned out that the factory had brought Jia Dongxu back.

As for who will take over the workstation, I guess either it has already been agreed upon, or it will be discussed after all the funeral arrangements are completed.

All the neighbors in the middle courtyard came out to watch. Zhang Dabiao leaned against the wooden fence of the small courtyard, which was on the covered walkway, with his arms crossed.

Actually, Zhang Dabiao didn't harbor any resentment towards Jia Dongxu.

Well, I've already settled the score with Jia Jiayi, Zhonghai, Shazhu, and others from last year.

For Zhang Dabiao, Jia Dongxu was just an NPC, unimportant.

But what can you say about others? They're really just like that. If you say they're bad, they don't dare to do anything bad on their own. They all listen to their mothers, so they're not really bad enough.

You could say he's stupid, but he occasionally comes up with a little bit of cleverness.

Anyway, Zhang Dabiao felt sorry for him. If it weren't for the double suppression and dragging down by Jia Zhangshi and Yi Zhonghai, it would be hard to say whether this person could have accomplished anything.

Jia Dongxu is a microcosm of an era. He was raised with great difficulty by his mother, and then he listened to his mother in everything, without having any opinions of his own.

They are both pitiful and despicable, but not exactly hateful.

He had a son and a daughter, his wife was pregnant with their third child, they had two rooms, and he even passed two exams in a row. At the peak of his life, he suddenly died.

Zhang Dabiao didn't know what adjective to use to summarize him.

It's too hasty.

If he had even a little bit of his own opinion, if his closest relatives had even a little bit of consideration for him, or even just listened to his advice, he wouldn't have gone offline so hastily.

Zhang Dabiao watched for a while, shook his head, and went back to the cabin to sleep.

There are plenty of pitiful people these days, it's none of my business.

------------

That very evening, Director Chen Guangliang came to apologize with gifts, accompanied by Director Wang. It was also learned that he had been warned by the Municipal Bureau, the incident had been recorded in his file, and he had become a negative example in the Dongcheng District Public Security System.

He was demoted one rank and is now the deputy director. He came over to apologize and beg for mercy, hoping that Zhang Dabiao would be lenient and not pursue the matter further.

The main reason is that Zhang Dabiao's revenge is very wicked, and Chen Guangliang doesn't dare to gamble.

Zhang Dabiao was originally too lazy to pay attention to him, but then Director Wang asked Chen Guangliang to bring out a scroll of paintings.

A traditional Chinese painting, depicting a monkey?

It's neither a macaque nor a golden monkey, what the hell is this?!

Is the signature "Zhang Daqian Yuan from Sichuan"?

Zhang Dabiao immediately forgave Chen Guangliang.

Director Chen was just too eager to serve the people and make a name for himself, which is understandable.

You had Zhang Daqian's paintings? Why didn't you say so earlier?!

[If you had told me earlier, I would have gone to the municipal bureau to plead your case!]

You should have said so earlier!

Aunt Wang really understands me; she gave me a gift that touched my heart!

------------

At the end of April, Jia Dongxu's body was kept in the factory for five days. It's unclear whether the factory hadn't reached an agreement on the compensation or the work position, but the Jia family was causing quite a commotion in the courtyard.

Setting up sheds to burn paper money is understandable, and the neighborhood committee will not stop this folk tradition.

But what's the meaning of placing the coffin in the very middle of the courtyard, blocking the way?

Is it creepy or not?

It was fortunate that the temperature in Beijing in April wasn't too high, otherwise the corpses would have fermented and turned into zombies. In addition, the occasional wails of Madam Jia and the suppressed sobs of Qin Huairu disturbed the entire courtyard.

Zhang Dabiao didn't care at all. Every day, he still went to school on time with Qin Jingru and He Yushui, going straight from the covered walkway to the front yard without even lifting an eyelid. When his father was buried, the Jia family not only didn't lend a hand or give a penny, but they also schemed to take the Zhang family's house and job. Now that the Jia family had fallen into such a predicament, in his eyes, it was entirely their own fault, and there was no point in sympathizing with them.

When Qin Jingru and He Yushui passed by, they would occasionally glance at the central courtyard, a hint of reluctance flashing in their eyes, but they would not say a word.

Mu Wanqing has been incredibly busy lately, working at the factory while squeezing in every spare moment to study for the upcoming college entrance exam. She's practically taken over most of the factory's bulletin board work, but she still hasn't landed the announcer position she'd been hoping for. She's not too bothered by it; getting into university is her most pressing wish right now, more important than any empty title. Zhang Dabiao, however, warned her not to come to the courtyard before Jia Dongxu's funeral, lest she attract bad luck.

Besides, these things have nothing to do with us. If there's anything, Uncle Liu Haizhong, the former Uncle Yi Zhonghai, and the street office and factory will take care of it. It's not their place to worry about it.

Mu Wanqing has been working and studying at the same time lately. She's already taken over several sections of the blackboard bulletin board, but she still hasn't managed to snag a job as a broadcaster. But it doesn't matter anymore, the college entrance exam is just around the corner.

Among all the staff in the hospital, Xu Damao was the one who couldn't hold on the longest.

He and Lou Xiao'e had already obtained their marriage certificate and should have held a grand wedding banquet to celebrate his marriage. However, as long as Jia Dongxu's funeral was not held and the courtyard was not cleared, his wedding banquet could not be held. In those days, auspiciousness was paramount, and no family could hold a wedding banquet next to a funeral, especially since the Lou family was a wealthy family that valued face and etiquette above all else—if they brought someone into their home to live without holding a wedding banquet, not only would the neighbors gossip, but the Lou family would also be unable to explain themselves.

So on the evening of the fourth day, when everyone was returning to the courtyard after get off work, Xu Damao finally couldn't hold back anymore and started making a scene with the Jia family.

"Jia Zhangshi! Qin Huairu! When will you ever stop? Jia Dongxu's funeral has been suspended for five days, and you still haven't held it?!"

"Are you planning to keep him out of the loop until the Lunar New Year?"